ABOUT

Berklee College of Music graduate, John Perkins, studied under percussion greats Dave DiCenso (Josh Groban, Duran Duran), Kenwood Dennard (Jaco Pastorius, Maceo Parker), Mike Mangini (Steve Vai, Dream Theater), Eguie Castrillo (Tito Puento, Steve Winwood, Giovanni Hidalgo), Ralph Peterson (Roy Hargrove, Wynton Marsalis), among others. Soon after completing his Music Business degree, John obtained his MBA in Music Marketing from Suffolk University in Boston. In 2008 John relocated to Southern California and joined The Firm Entertainment Management (Leonard DiCaprio, Snoop Dog, Cameron Diaz, Martin Scorsese). The following year, he pursued a career in Music Publishing at Chrysalis Music Group (Debbie Harry, My Morning Jacket, Outkast, CeeLo Green, Ray Lamontagne) in Beverly Hills.

AM Gold plays the retro soft-rock smash hit songs from the 70’s and early 80’s. Artists such as Christopher Cross, Michael McDonald, Robbie Dupree, Ambrosia, Hall & Oates, Steely Dan, Toto, and so many more, all fit the description of a “Yacht Rock” artist. A crystal-clear definition of this music paradigm can be found at Wiki’s “Yacht Rock” page.

AM Gold is the first installment in a fleet of high-end, elite paradigm tribute bands, all geared for private events and festivals.

A background of “Yacht Rock”

“YACHT ROCK” (video series), was born out of the work of a group of comedians in Los Angeles that (perhaps lovingly) captured the true greatness of “smooth music”. JD Ryznar brilliantly brought to light how this soft-rock phenomenon all went down (or might have gone down) among the relatively small group of artists and writers that cut these records.

These songs were (and still are) loved by many, across multiple generations, and today, you don’t have to look far to find a band paying tribute to these songs, songs seldom ever previously performed live. Steely Dan rarely toured, and for the last 30 years, chances were few and far between that you would catch Robbie Dupree on a stage singing “Steal Away”. …But now, problem solved. Because of this more-recent “yacht rock” phenomenon, so many of these classic artists have been fortunate to step out of retirement as a result of the strong resurgence and fresh demand for this music to be heard live.

The world is hardened, and is a different place than it was when these songs first hit the airwaves, and because of that, people like to – in any way they can – go back to that simpler time, ..a “softer” time. AM Gold and this great music takes people on a welcomed nostalgia trip. And when you break these songs down, it’s easy to hear the brilliance in the writing, as well as the upper-level musicianship on the recorded performances.

Music lovers, have no fear; there’s neither shame, nor anything out-of-the-ordinary in having both a White Stripes AND a Toto CD in the same multi-disc player.